Staff

Joycee Black joined IEL as the Senior Program Manager in October 2024. As Senior Program Manager, Joycee manages the technical assistance initiatives for the transition programs. She holds a master’s degree in industrial/organizational psychology and an MBA, both from Roosevelt University. She has a robust background in non-profit management and a skill for fostering organizational […]

Maddy joined IEL in 2024 as a Program Associate and currently works on Everyone: An Advocate, The Ready to Achieve Mentoring Program (RAMP), and IEL’s policy efforts, bringing her commitment to educational access and equity. Prior to joining IEL, Maddy gained valuable experience working as an equity-focused educator, student organizer, and public servant. She interned

Liz Thacker joined IEL as the Community Connections Manager, and now serves as our Senior Manager of Partnerships and Engagement. She is no stranger though to IEL having contracted with IEL for nearly four years to support the operations of our Coordinators Network. She brings over 10 years of experience working as a Coordinator with

Zipporah joined IEL in December of 2022. As a program coordinator, Zipporah is responsible for ongoing administrative and logistic support for the staff and initiatives at IEL. Currently, she supports the Ready to Achieve Mentoring Program, the Virginia Career Pathways project, and IEL’s portfolio youth leadership programming. Before joining IEL, Zipporah held a variety of

Proud Puertorriqueña who believes Education and Community are key for a successful life. Love spending time with my family and friends.

Passionate about and committed to helping and bringing people together. Specializing in personalizing diverse events and handling stressful event situations with grace. Creative designs with incredible attention to detail and structured + logistical event flow is a signature.

Christa Rowland believes in the power of uniting communities to create a brighter future for all children. Before joining the IEL team, Christa was the Director of Community Impact at the United Way of Treasure Valley in Boise, Idaho. She helped grow the system of Community Schools in Idaho, founded the Idaho Community School Learning

Community organizer. Loves family, basketball and poetry. Believes in the power of people to make meaningful change.

Joining IEL in 2022, Michelle Lessly Blackburn is the Senior Policy Manager, working to advance the policy agenda of both IEL and the Coalition for Community Schools on the federal level. She brings 15 years of experience in higher education administration and policy research. Her policy work focuses on the Family Educational Rights and Privacy